Looking Pretty and Other Adventures
by BirdieInATree
Summary: A series of oneshots based on het Nordic pairings. Fem!Sweden dress shopping, salmiakki, rainy days with Denmark, the wonders of relationships, fluff, angst, and more... Contains SuFin, DenNor, some others. Because even Hetalia fans need het sometimes...
1. High Fallutin' 1

_Hello! This is the start of a project that I've started to make myself update things. This is a series of oneshots, some related, some not, using genderbent Nordics! Why genderbent Nordics? Because they need mroe love and I can't write slash to save my life!_

_They won't all be girls for it, but at least one will be in each chapter. I made up the prompts myself, and I have enough to last a while._

_I will include ratings in each chapter, but there will be nothing overly explicit._

_I will be using human names fairly often, and because they aren't all official I'm including them here._

_Denmark: Mathias/Maria "Mia" Andersen_

_Sweden: Berwald/Valborga "Val" Oxenstierna (I was tempted to name her Susan XD)_

_Finland: Tino/Tuuli Väinämöinen_

_Iceland: Eiríkur/Brynja Olaffson_

_Norway: Halldor/Halldora Bjornsen (I don't remember where I saw this name, but I love it.)_

_Thank you for reading my overly large Author's Note!_

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><p><strong>Prompt: High fallutin' (yes, they're all funny words, mostly Southern slang)<strong>

**Pairings: SuFin, DenNor**

**Genderbent: Sweden, Denmark, Iceland**

**Summary: Maria wants to make Valborga "pretty" for England's formal gathering and, more importantly, to woo Tino. Part 1 of 2.**

**Rating: T for Denmark's habit of drinking. And some other people's in the next part.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia**

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><p>Halldor reached into the mailbox, knowing that it would mostly be junk. They mostly emailed now, so it was odd to get any interesting messages.<p>

But he couldn't remember writing to England about anything, so getting a fancy looking envelope from the island nation was a bit odd. Remembering the easily excited woman he'd left inside, he read it on the way in first.

Apparently, in an attempt to smooth things over after the last world meeting, England was hosting a formal ball. Citing the lack of class that had been displayed, he had decided to host something that would focus on the nation's more polite points.

_He can't possibly be referring to Mia._ The Norwegian thought to himself as he stepped inside.

As if to further enhance his point, said Dane was sprawled out on his couch, watching TV with a bottle of beer in her hand.

He walked behind the couch, headed for the kitchen, and casually said, "Mia, we're going to a party."

"Yeah buddy!"

"Not that kind of party."

She twisted her neck to look at him, "Then what kind of party is it?"

He stopped to answer, "It's a formal ball thing."

She turned back, "Eh, that doesn't sound too bad. I haven't been to anything like that in a while."

"There's no beer."

She gave him an knowing look, "I'm serious. It could be fun. Who's invited?"

"Anyone who was at the last meeting, and anyone England's trying to suck up to." Halldor sat in the chair nearby, a cup of coffee in his hand. "How much have you had to drink today?"

"Never mind that." She waved a hand casually, "I was thinking about something else entirely. We get to see Val in a dress."

Without breaking his stoic appearance, he responded, "I didn't know you swung that way. It hurts a little."

"I _have _been drinking today." she joked, "I'm gonna call her." she said, setting her drink on the table and pulling out a cellphone.

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><p>"M'ria, H'lld'r, wh't 're you d'ing here?" said the tall Swede, currently standing in her front doorway.<p>

"What do you mean you aren't going to the party?" Maria immediately responded.

To catch up, Maria, the moment she heard about Valborga's plan, had demanded Halldor take her to the Swede's house. Since they were already going dress shopping, they swung by and picked up Brynja on the way, who was currently waiting in the car.

Her eyes widened, "I don' w'nt to." she meant to say something along the lines of, "I don't really feel like it, and I'm not exactly one for social gatherings." It didn't really come out like that, obviously.

"You have to go!" It was a bit strange to see Maria want to spend any time with Sweden, but when she set her mind to something, it got done. Or sometimes forgotten entirely the moment she saw something interesting.

"Val, it would be good for you to get out for a while. You work too hard sometimes." Norway chimed in.

She glanced away for a moment, "W'll T'no be th're?"

The two people on the porch deadpanned. It took one glance at Maria from Halldor for him to realize what had just happened, and her face slowly transformed into a huge smile. Of course everyone knew Sweden liked Finland, occasionally referring to him as her husband when he was around, despite the Finn's protest. Apparently it had just clicked with Maria that this was an oppurtunity for-

"Matchmaking time! Go get your purse, Val, cause we're going dress shopping!"

And so there they were, on the way to a dress shop Brynja had recommended, Halldor driving, Maria in the passenger seat, Valborga and Brynja sitting in the back.

Valborga turned to the young nation on her right, "Why're you here?"

"I couldn't just go dress shopping with Hal, I need a girl with me!"

Rolling her eyes, Brynja responded in her high voice, "I was feeling a bit masochistic today."

"'nd H'lld'r?"

"To carry stuff and drive and tell us we're pretty!"

"Maria's lisence was taken away and I wasn't going to subject Brynja to this alone." at Maria's pointed look, he added with a sigh, "You're beautiful." He convienantly left out the fact that he felt obliged to help Maria because he was her (and he continues to shudder at the word somtimes) boyfriend.

Valborga nodded, sitting in silence for a while.

Maria doesn't like silence.

"We're going to make you pretty for Tino!" she exclaimed as they neared their destination.

"I think she's pretty already." chimed Brynja, shooting a glare at the Dane.

It took a moment for Maria to register this, "Of course she is! We'll just make her... less indimidating!"

Valborga just sat there, not really caring what her rival said.

Brynja had a similar look on her face, but responded, "I suppose that's okay."

"It's f'ne." she said, looking back out the window.

"Turn right up here, and it's the first place on the left." Brynja spoke up to her brother.

He nodded, and then they were there.

It was a small place, and not very busy. The dresses inside didn't appear overly expensive, but they weren't willing to pay a lot of money for something they wouldn't wear often.

Once inside, they were greeted by an enthusiastic young man with a dress draped over one arm.

"Welcome! And how can I help you ladies today?"

"We're going to a formal party, and need dresses!" Maria exclaimed excitedly.

He chuckled, "I thought so! Just look around, and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask."

Which immediately entailed Denmark's running to the nearest rack and looking for something in her size, leaving her friends (?) standing bewildered and unsure of where to go.

Brynja, having been there once or twice already, walked over to a section with smaller sizes. Halldor briefly considered following to make sure she didn't pick something inappropriate, but noticed Valborga was looking rather confused.

"I used to pick out clothes for Bryn all the time. Come on, we'll find something."

Valborga gave him a grateful look, and they went over to where Maria was combing through dresses, finally finding some in her size. Valborga wasn't that much bigger or taller, so they decided to start there.

"Norge! Hold these!" he heard Maria say, and allowed her to drape a pile of dresses over his arm as he began to look through a few with the intent of sparing Sweden the trouble.

"Halldor, can you hold these?" and then suddenly he was covered in dresses.

"Of course, if you call me brother." he responded, hoping it might sway the small nation.

"You wouldn't make your sister carry all these, would you?" she responded without missing a beat.

So Norway continued to be buried in dresses.

And then Maria turned her attention to Sweden.

Which resulted in him being covered in more dresses, most being ones that he could never imagine the Swede wearing under any circumstances. He'd seen her during their Viking days on the bow of a ship, sword in hand and jaw set stubbornly as her men fought the waves.

Even Maria, with her favorite battle axe, couldn't possibly be associated with the girl now looking through dresses. But he had seen her in (and out of, if he was forced to admit) a lot of different outfits through the centuries.

After a few minutes, he sat down in a comfortable looking chair and pretty much disappeared in the pile of clothing.

Then it was time to try on the dresses, which he gladly placed in the dressing room, allowing the girls to seperate who was wearing what, before going back out and sitting in front of the large mirror and platform, waiting.

There's a process to trying on clothing.

Valborga didn't really know it, but there was. She learned it quickly though, and it was fairly simple. You try on a dress, look in the mirror in the dressing room, and if it was nice enough you'd go outside for a second opinion.

There were only two stalls in the tiny store, so she let the other two go first.

That's when she looked, really looked, at the dresses Maria had picked out for her.

And saw pink. And a lot of fabric. And _frills and lace._

Suddenly she feared for her sanity.

After Maria had gone through a few dresses that had looked much better on the rack, she pushed Valborga into the stall with a dress.

It took a minute to get the dress on, and when she looked down at herself...

"N't c'min' out."

It was then that she looked down and saw that _her clothes were gone._

"D'nm'rk, g've me m' cl'thes."

"Come out and get them, Swede!"

Brynja, having stopped her trip outside to show her brother a nice blue dress with a tight torso and loose, frilly skirt, stopped when she noticed what was happening.

"...f'ne."

And then her eyes widened when she realized what dress Maria had given Valborga.

It was baby blue, with a huge skirt. It had pink accents, and a large pink bow on the back.

Brynja, who was pushing her back into the stall, grabbed a nicer dress and handed it to her, "Try this instead."

Maria was almost rolling on the ground laughing, "Val, I think that one's good..."

Sadly, the next one was also pink, but fit a little better around the chest. It was short though, and wouldn't feel very comfortable to try to sit down in.

"'s Mia out th're?"

"No, she went to go show Halldor a dress."

She stepped out to get another one, sadly just as Denmark walked in. Seeing her in the short, slightly low-cut dress, she immediately grabbed the tall girl by the arm and pulled her out to Norway.

"Sweden has boobs!"

"...oh dear God." Norway muttered, looking away from his clearly embarrassed friend.

So, the process was altered slightly: Any time Sweden was wearing a dress that looked remotely feminine or humorous, she was dragged out by Denmark to look in the bigger mirror.

After being dragged out in a fluffy yellow dress that did nothing but accent how pale the Nordic was, Norway decided it was time to get help.

"Mia, I'll be right back." he said as the Dane walked back after showing off a black dress that she'd decided was too frilly.

He walked over to the counter, where the man from earlier was idly texting.

"I need some help finding a dress." he said, and the man immediately brightened.

"Of course! Who- it's the tall one with glasses, isn't it?"

"How'd you guess?"

"She just came out wearing a bright red dress with more cleavage than a nudist nursing home, and I think she's about to break that blonde girl's arm."

Halldor was very glad he'd left when he did.

"So can you help?" he asked, almost ready to start begging.

The man nodded, "Come on, I'll need you to hold the dresses."

Norway nodded, but out of the corner of his eye he saw Brynja in a short, strapless dress. "Just a moment."

A few minutes later, after the man had gone through dresses faster than Halldor had ever seen, they had a few nice ones to try.

Norway had flicked Denmark on the nose when she tried to protest, and suddenly dress shopping was much more tolerable for the tall Swede.

After a few decent dresses, she tried on a plain, dark blue dress with thin straps. It was a conservative length, with some designs at the bottom.

Since even Maria was forced to admit that it made her look very nice, she decided that it would do.

Brynja looked for a moment before disappearing and returning with an even darker blue shawl, draping it over the Swede's arms before holding her straight hair up. With some nice shoes, which she already had for work, that would do nicely.

Iceland had found a light blue dress with a red sash around the middle that Halldor had deemed appropriate. Denmark, who wasn't subject to a brother's watchful eye, picked out a dark red, strapless dress with a low back, but it was long enough to be considered conservative.

So they'd all survived dress shopping.

Then it was time for the party.

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><p><strong>8-9-11: First few chapters edited for formatting issues as well as some mistakes that I didn't catch. I was using an iffy program before, and wasn't able to install the word processor I normally use for writing.<strong>


	2. High Fallutin' 2

**Prompt: High fallutin'**

**Pairings: SuFin, DenNor**

**Genderbent: Sweden, Denmark, Iceland**

**Summary: Maria wants to make Valborga "pretty" for England's formal gathering and, more importantly, to woo Tino. Part 2 of 2.**

**Rating: T for alchohol, and the fact France is in here at all. Tino's cuteness prevents it from being M.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia**

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><p>The Nordic women had all (?) agreed to go to England's party together, mostly because Denmark still didn't have a lisence and Sweden really, <em>really<em> didn't want to show up alone, and Brynja was there to make sure they didn't kill each other.

England had found a very nice place for the "ball", as he called it. Austria was playing music on a beautiful grand piano, the Italies watching from nearby. Russia was casually standing by the punch bowl, ready to ensnare any wandering nations who he might want to become "friends" with, his sisters cautiously socializing. The Baltics were on the opposite side of the room as Russia, as per usual.

England greeted the women kindly, "Norway arrived a bit earlier. I think I saw him speaking with Japan."

Maria thanked him, patting him on the back a little too hard as she went to find her date. Iceland, messing with her long pigtails, went over to the food.

That's when Sweden noticed Finland, who was talking casually with Estonia and the other Baltics, as well as Poland.

The Pole gave her a glare as she walked over, but didn't say anything.

"H'y T'no." she greeted, and Tino immediately directed his gaze to her.

And stopped.

"Hey Val." he responded, eyes glued to her dress. "You look...really nice tonight."

Estonia and Lithuania, always the ones to read the mood, turned to walk away. Estonia caught sight of Latvia looking a little too close at an expensive vase, and Lithuania tugged Poland away with some words about needing to talk to America.

"D-did you try the punch?" Tino said, trying to make conversation.

"J'st g't h're." she answered.

"Oh, that's nice. Are the others here?"

"I h'd t' dr've D'nm'rk." she responded, accidentally deepening her frown.

Tino's eyes were suddenly slightly fearful, "Oh, I'm sure it wasn't _that_ bad."

_Yes it was..._ She was about to say, but decided against it when she really thought about it, "No, Ice w's th're."

Tino nodded, staring at his drink. He didn't think Sweden was nearly as intimidating when she was all...dressed up and looking friendly, but old habits die hard. He knew she liked him, and he maybe, possibly, liked her a little as well...

Maria suddenly arrived, dragging along a reluctant Halldor.

"Fin! How've you been?" she said, slinging an arm over the small man's shoulders, "Getting ready for Christmas soon, aren't ya?"

"Uhh, yeah..." he said, a bit startled, but quickly regained his friendly demeanor, "I'm still trying to fix the sleigh from last year's mishap."

Halldor seemed to be the only one noticing Valborga's glare.

"Mia, let's go get something to eat." he said, tugging the Dane away.

Tino, out of things to say, tried, "I'm going to sit down for a minute."

Valborga hesitantly followed, trying to look as casual as possible as she sat next to him at one of the small tables.

They looked to the piano, where Spain was now seated with a guitar, facing away from the keys. Romano sat down next to him, slapping him in the back of the head when the taller nation said something. Prussia, who had snuck in at some point, and France, who could be suprisingly classy when he wanted to be, chuckled from nearby.

They started playing a distinctly Spanish song, though Sweden couldn't place it.

Tino, on the other hand, could, "I like this song."

"Me too..." Valborga muttered quietly.

"I'm going to go get something to drink." Tino said, and Valborga nodded wihtout standing, not eager to leave her place at the table.

The music faltered a bit when England suddenly stumbled in the middle of the floor, apparently drunk, and France and Prussia started laughing a bit more.

Finland hurried back to the table and sat down, he raised his glass, only to have Sweden cover it with her hand.

"D'n't dr'nk th't." she said, gesturing to England. China also seemed to be looking at bit red, as were Germany and Italy. Denmark rushed to get some punch, only to be held back by Norway.

Tino, looking around a bit and noticing these things as well, said, "Let's go out to the garden while everything cools down..."

"'kay."

There were a picnic tables set up outside, but no one had really migrated out there quite yet.

Tino, in one of his moments of naivety, grabbed Valborga's hand and tugged her over to one of the tables and sat down, gesturing for her to sit next to him.

Though a bit startled, the Swede sat down and tried to hide her blush.

Tino thought for a moment, and then looked down at the wood, "You look very nice tonight."

Valborga planned to say thank you, "You 'lr'dy s'd th't."

"Umm, sorry?"

The tall Swede really wanted to say that it was fine and she was flattered... "'s 'kay."

Looking at her, in the dusk sky with the light from inside accenting her features, Tino couldn't really be scared of her. She was strong, but always so kind to him.

Which brought him back to his thoughts from earlier. The ones that were interrupted by Denmark right before he could admit to himself that...

"Hey, Val?"

"Hmm?"

He leaned up and kissed her on the cheek.

A massive blush spread over the Nordic woman's features and her eyes widened. Tino looked away shyly before he could notice the small smile she was trying to keep off her face, as he was trying to hide his own.

If they had turned around to look at one of the large windows, they would have seen their fellow Nordics peeking out the window, as well as the chaos going on inside.

"Mia, shouldn't you give them some privacy?"

"It's your fault for not letting me get drunk with everyone else!"

"Did you have to bring Ice?"

"She has the camera!" she grabbed Iceland's arm, and sure enough she had a camera clutched in her hand.

Back outside, Tino had leaned up to say something to Valborga very quietly before pecking her on the lips once.

A camera flashed, England screamed something about frogs, a hamburger flew out an open window, and Russia ran out through the garden screaming and partially stripped from his suit by the Belarusian girl sure to follow, punctuated by Prussia's signature laugh from inside.

And Finland and Sweden were sitting at the picnic table, holding hands and smiling.

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><p><strong>And there you go. From now on, these will be updated on Thursdays.<strong>

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><p>OMAKE:<p>

"Romanoooo!~ Did you have to break my guitar?~"

"It's weird how my head could hurt worse than yours after that, idiot..."

"Oh, right... Romanoooo!~ Did you have to break it over my head?~"

"Yes."


	3. Salmiakki

**Prompt: Salmiakki**

**Pairings: SuFin**

**Genderbent: Finland**

**Summary: Tuuli eats strange foods sometimes. Berwald is not amused.**

**Rated: K+, maybe T**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

**This is ridiculously fluffy and sweet. Don't question it, I wanted to write something sweet.**

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><p>After all the awkwardness that plagued new couples, Berwald and Tuuli had settled into a comfortable routine since they'd started living together.<p>

Every morning, one of them would make breakfast. Usually it was whoever woke up first, and Tuuli was happy to say that if they'd ("Umm...") slept together the night before, it was always Berwald who made it. She wasn't sure why he did, but it was very sweet.

One morning, Berwald had to go to a meeting with a boss very early, and hadn't had time to eat before dragging himself out the door. Tuuli, who slept in a bit, went ahead and made pancakes (she couldn't remember who gave her the recipe, maybe America?) and left some in the refrigerator for him to warm up when he got back.

She heard him come in as she fed Hanatamago, well, mostly she heard the door slam. Which was a sign that the Swede either had something against their door, or had had a bad morning.

The small Finn was betting on the latter.

So she walked out of the pantry, a bit (irrationally, she knew) nervous about facing the angry Swede, "Hey Berwald, how was your morning?"

He pulled out a chair a bit harder than necessary and sat down his head in his hands, his answer more than obvious without the grunt accompanying it.

She smiled, pitying him, "I made pancakes. You may have to put them in the microwave for a few seconds, but they're still good." The small woman walked over and put a hand on his shoulder.

Then he was standing again, towering over her. "N't h'ngry..." he said and then he kissed her, a hand pressed against her lower back to hold her closer. Her hands gripped his short hair, and she groaned in the back of her throat as she felt a hand in her hair, but then as Berwald tried to deepen the kiss a bit more...

He suddenly broke away, coughing. "Wh't'd ya eat?"

Tuuli, startled by the sudden changes in mood, answered after a moment, "Salmiakki..."

He let go of her and headed straight to the fridge.

"What are you doing?"

"M'kin' p'ncakes..."

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><p><strong>Salmiakki is, in layman's terms, salty liquorice.<strong>

**I've never actually had Salmiakki, though I'd like to try it, but I've heard it's an... aquired taste. If it's not really that bad and you happen to know another funny sounding, odd Finnish food, please let me know.**


	4. Exsanguination

**Prompt: Exsanguination**

**Pairings: DenNor**

**Genderbent: Norway**

**Summary: So soon after Berwald's departure, Mathias prefers to ignore his injuries.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.**

**Early update because I'm going to the lake tomorrow and don't know if I'll have internet!**

**Alright, I've been posting a lot of fluffy things, but I've really enjoyed writing these "feel-good" stories. My usual genres don't usually have room for very sweet things... I promise that I'll have something serious out soon!**

**Also, these stories have nothing to do with each other unless I specify it, so next chapter could easily be Denmark wooing Norway in the present day.**

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><p>Halldora hated it when Mathias came home injured, but it was a fairly constant thing to see him return with half-bandaged wounds and a blood and gore covered axe.<p>

Luckily, she was also a former Viking, even if she didn't go out to fight as much under Denmark's rule, she knew how to take care of injuries.

And, in general, take care of Mathias.

He sat at the four-poster bed, almost pouting as Halldora walked over with some sterilized bandages. Her long hair was pulled back and her sleeves were rolled up in preparation for fixing up the Dane.

"I told you, one of my men already patched me up." he said when she laid out the supplies.

"Take off your shirt."

He smirked, "Are you sure you don't want to take it off for me?"

She hit him over the head, "Just do it."

He hesitantly pulled off his loose shirt, revealing dirty bandages that didn't completely cover the injury to the right side of his ribcage, directly on top of the smallest ribs.

Halldora's eyes widened, but her voice shook a bit as she peeled off some of the rags, "What happened?"

"I was shot with a flaming arrow. It hit a chink in my armor and managed to burn..." he winced, "the skin." He paused and a shadow crossed his face, "That stupid Sweden had to show off some new tactic..."

"Idiot, you should have fallen back." the Norwegian said, and crinkled her nose a bit at the smell of burned flesh.

He chuckled painfully, "You know I couldn't do that. It was _him_. He had the little one by his side and everything, like he was showing off..."

She began to wrap the bandages around his wounds, and he winced when she pulled them a little too tight. She then wrapped the steriile rags in longer strips of cloth, binding them to the wound.

The small woman then turned her attention to a cut he had to the right of his left temple, dirtying the hair with dried blood. She washed and bound the wound, as head injuries could bleed so much and reopen so easily.

He stole a kiss as she finished, but she didn't let it get far.

The Dane had always been affectionate, even in public he would always have an arm wrapped around her, or would sit as close as possible, stealing any chance he could just to kiss her or run a hand through her hair, often earning a sharp jab to the ribs or a punch to the shoulder. But not always.

Like after she'd put away all her medicinal supplies, and she returned to look over her work, she let him place a light kiss to her temple and run his fingers over her clothed shoulder. He tugged at the clothing to expose her collarbone further and breathe in her scent.

She pulled away, "I'll get you a clean shirt."

Mathias sighed, trying to think of a good way to get her back. He wasn't paying attention, and didn't catch the shirt aimed at his face. He pulled it on, wincing when he raised his right arm. He shifted a bit in the tight bandages, loosening them when the Norwegian disappeared into the washroom for a moment. He knew she would say that it would just make it bleed more, but it would be harder to...

He lied back against the mattress, pulling up one of the blankets.

As Halldora began to leave the room, he spoke, "Aww, and no goodnight kiss?"

Norway, glancing back at the man, pitied him and walked back to peck him lightly on the lips.

The Dane took the oppurtunity to wrap an arm around her waist and haul her up onto the bed. She yelped in response, but couldn't push away. He situated her on top of him, bringing her down for another kiss.

Now, if there was one thing Halldora would admit about Mathias, it was that he was a damn good kisser when he wasn't drunk.

She melted against him, her hands tangled in the front of his shirt. They stayed like that until the need for air forced them apart, and she layed her head against his chest while she tried to catch her breath.

Mathias, being more tired than normal, was willing just to have her there with him while they dozed. She shifted against him and he winced, but didn't move her. It was several minuets later that she moved again, starting to lean up to give him a short kiss.

Then she noticed something.

"Why is your shirt wet?"

"I was hoping you wouldn't notice."

She sat up on his abdoman and, sure enough, there was a dark red stain on his loose shirt. She glared for a moment at his sheepish smile before sliding off the bed to get more bandages.

After rebinding the wound, she threw another shirt at him and started to leave.

"Wait, Norge..." he started, but couldn't think of anything to say. "At least, stay in here..."

He was really like a puppy sometimes. Even if she didn't even talk to him, he was happy just to be in the same room. She told herself that it was so she could make sure he didn't reopen his injuries or undid the bandages.

So she slid into the large bed next to him, on the side that wasn't injured because she knew he would pull her closer the moment she had settled into her pillow, even if they both woke up covered in his blood.

She let him hold her like a child might a toy, and leaned against him for warmth in the cold night. There would be more fights with Sweden, and she wouldn't even be there for all of them, but at that moment all that mattered were the wounds he (she) was currently nursing.

And that he needed to clean his axe the next morning, because it was currently covered in a certain Swede's blood.


	5. Insomniac

**Prompt: Insomniac**

**Pairings: One-sided DenNor, sort of**

**Genderbent: Norway (I really wanted to do Denmark, but it just didn't fit…)**

**Summary: Mathias always has something to say.**

**Alright, I wrote this a few weeks ago while I was spamming you guys with fluff. It's proof that this story isn't just an excuse to write cute things!**

**Another early update because I have orientation sometime tomorrow.**

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><p><em>Halldora made hot chocolate for them, and they sat at the dinner table.<em>

_She made sure Mathias caught onto the mood so he would stop smiling. It didn't work._

"_This isn't working."_

The small Norwegian stood on the porch, leaning against the railing as she reminisced.

"_Halldora, I'm sorry!" he said, getting desperate._

_Her eyes narrowed, "Why is that?"_

"_I… I don't know…"_

She picks at a loose splinter in the wood, taking a sip of her drink. She watches the scenery, listening to the quiet sound of birds. Anything to keep the focus off—

"_There's nothing you can do. I just… feel like something is missing." She said, leaning back in the chair, as if she could put distance between them._

_Mathias' wide eyes slowly faded, along with his tightened posture, "Halldora… Norge…"_

"_Do you even realize how long we've been like this?" she almost spat._

"It's been too long." She tells herself, "We don't even act like a couple anymore." Her gaze drifts up to the vague shapes of clouds, and she can't help but think _maybe we never did._

_And then he was at the door, unsure for the first time when he would return. When he would see the neat house, smell the clean air, and, most importantly, hold Norge, his—_

_No. Not his. Maybe she never—_

_That isn't right either._

_So, in the clearest voice he could muster, he said, "Du ved jeg elsker deg."_

_She washed the cups that they had used after his car disappeared into the darkening day._

"_Jeg vet_." She says in the morning light, taking another sip of her now-cold coffee. The drink tastes bitter, more than she would have liked, but she drinks it anyway. She feels like she should move, go inside, anything, but doesn't. She sighs heavily, but her stoic mask doesn't break.

(That is, until she wonders if Denmark is home yet.)

"_Jeg ved_."

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><p><strong>If you couldn't tell, Norway stayed up all night after Denmark left. I'm not sure I got that concept across very well. Also, I got multiple translations for the last phrase in Danish. I thought that one looked best, but if I messed it up please let me know!<strong>

**Yay for symbolism! It's been so long since I was last able to successfully write something in this style!**

**Translations:**

**Du ved jeg elsker deg: You know I love you. (Danish)**

**Jeg vet: I know (Norwegian)**

**Jeg ved: I know (Danish)**


	6. Alabarda

**Prompt: Alabarda**

**Pairings: mentions of DenNor, Spamano**

**Rating: T for Romano's mouth, and some bad puns**

**Genderbent: Norway, Romano (!)**

**Summary: Antonio and Mathias both had a habit of leaving their favorite battle axes nearby, just in case. When they notice each others, a battle of manliness ensues.**

**Notes: I felt it would fit this situation better if Romano were a girl as a bit of a parallel. If you feel differently, just skip this chapter. Who knows? I don't like writing Slash, but maybe I'll rewrite it without any genderbending at some point. (Probably not…)**

**Also, should Romano be Romana? I don't know much about the Italian language except by extension from Spanish…**

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><p>"Well I think that that was the most boring conference this year." Mathias exclaimed as he and Halldora left the building.<p>

"America and China got into a fight while England threw things at France, who was stripping."

"He's _always _stripping."

"Prussia snuck in and tried to molest Austria while Hungary started beating him with a chair."

"It was—"

"_Then _Greece woke up and started setting angry cats on Turkey, who somehow managed to knock two of the Baltics out the window while running, leaving Lithuania and Poland to deal with Russia using them as a human shield after Belarus started using the coffee machine as a weapon." He had to wonder how she managed to sound entirely emotionless while saying that.

"There was no beer. My point stands."

They stopped in front of Mathias' red SUV (he had finally gotten his license back), and Halldora asked, "Erikur is going out with some friends and I told him he could take the car, I'm terrified to ask, but can I ride with you back to the hotel?"

He smiled broadly at the question, "Of course! Just toss your stuff in the back."

She muttered her thanks before going to get her things from her brother.

It was then that Spain walked over to his red truck (there were a couple of empty crates no doubt normally filled with tomatoes in the back), that just so happened to be parked next to Denmark's. He went around to the back leaned against it, and the Dane walked around to chat.

"Hey Spain, what's up?" he asked casually, leaning against the back of his own car.

The Spaniard looked up, "Oh, hello Denmark! I'm just waiting for _mi querida._ She didn't want to ride back with Italy and Germany."

He remembered the spitfire South Italy, mostly from her language and outbursts in meetings, "I'm doing the same, sort of. Except I can't call her by pet names without getting hit…"

"Neither can I!" exclaimed Spain, smiling broadly.

Romano walked up then, and started to put a few heavy bags in the back of the truck, handing some to Spain. Coincidentally, Norway came over at about the same time to do almost the same with Denmark, except she only had one bag and just tossed it in.

"Antonio, why do you have that damn axe in here?"

And that was the phrase that started it.

Norway paused, "You know, I was wondering the same about Mathias."

The former Viking locked eyes with the former conquistador, and there was an unspoken challenge there.

"You have an axe?" Spain said, almost cautiously.

"Why yes, yes I do." answered the Dane, a strangely violent smile crossing his features.

Norway and Romano looked on, somewhat confused and bored.

That is until their respective boyfriends pulled battle axes (kept sharp enough to be deadly) out of their respective cars. The handles were shorter than they had used during their glory days, and it was clear the weapons had been made under the style of different cultures.

Halldora immediately put a hand across the taller nation's chest, Lovina whacking the other over the head.

This didn't faze them, though. They simply moved away from the women and into a more secluded part of the lot. They were in an odd limbo, both known for having a dark side, but not quite there yet. It was more competitive, happy to find someone who shared a love for their signature weapon.

"Are they really going to fight out here?" asked Lovina, rhetorically.

"Are we really going to bother trying to stop them?" responded the other woman without missing a beat.

But what happened next did not leave the men in a bloody, twisted mess that would undoubtedly have to be scraped up by two unhappy ladies.

"Hah, mine's bigger!" exclaimed Denmark, testing the weight of his weapon.

"Ah, but mine has a spike!" responded Spain, pointing it menacingly toward the other nation.

"It sure looks shiny, or is that _glitter?_"

"Tch, compared to your barbarian _mierda_ this is art!"

"I don't know what you said, but my _barbarian whatever that word was _controlled all of Northern Europe!"

Meanwhile, Halldora and Lovina were realizing they had a lot more in common than they originally realized.

"So this happens often?" asked the Italian, her arms crossed.

"Normally he's drunk and aiming for Sweden, but yes." answered Halldora. "Does Spain do this often?"

"Actually no, normally he's just being a dense bastard who needs to accept a challenge more often." She paused in thought, "Unless it was a drinking contest against some of his friends."

"Mathias just needs to learn not to challenge Finland to a drinking contest."

"The little one?" questioned Lovina, turning towards her companion.

The Norwegian nodded, "You'd be surprised." They looked back at the two nations fighting when axes started swinging.

After realizing that they hadn't actually started making contact yet, Lovina asked, "I wonder why they do this."

"They like shiny things."

"That sounds about right to me."

Norway was the next to ask a question, "How do you manage to rein him in? By the sound of it you have as much trouble as I do."

"I find a well-placed headbutt works well. And you?"

"Throwing something or cutting of his airways is pretty effective." she answered, probably more casually than one should be able to when discussing such matters.

"If Antonio wore more ties, I would try that." Lovina said, and Halldora nodded in response.

The next time they looked back, the two nations had apparently come to some agreement. They were shaking each other's hand, axes slung over their shoulders with big smiled on their faces. They walked back over in casual conversation.

As casual as it could be for a Dane and a Spaniard dressed in semi-formal attire carrying battle axes could be, that is.

"Well it's about damn time." started the ever-irritated Italian.

Spain scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "Sorry Lovi…"

"Don't call me that." she said, whacking him on the head again.

Norway shook her head, "Now put those things away before you hurt yourselves."

Denmark spoke up next, "Hey, Antonio and I are going out clubbing tomorrow after the conference, so make sure you can catch a ride with Ice or something."

"Ah, Lovina, you won't mind riding with your sister, right? And if you are really unhappy, I'm sure Belgium would be happy to help." offered Antonio.

Halldora had no problem with this, as she had no desire to go clubbing with Mathias and his new playmate, but apparently Lovina didn't like it for some reason or another.

"That's okay, Halldora and I are going shopping!" she said, grabbing the slightly taller girl's arm. "And _you _can't come." The Norwegian wasn't sure if the "you" was plural or not, but nodded in agreement just to see the look on Mathias' face.

Antonio brightened immediately, "Ah, that sounds lovely~!"

Mathias agreed, "Aww, Hallie made a friend!"

So they went home after avoiding a fight, but that didn't mean the Viking and conquistador were any less bruised.


	7. Cantankerous

**Prompt: Cantankerous**

**Pairings: SuFin**

**Genderbent: Finland**

**Summary: Berwald unintentionally ruins Tuuli's mood.**

**IT'S SO FLUFFY! And probably horribly cliché and all that junk, but you know, I wanted to write something to make someone smile, not test their (or my) mental fortitude. (Also, if people are allowed to write smut for no reason, I think they should also be allowed to write cute, sweet things.)**

**Dee: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR REVIEWING. THAT MADE MY DAY.**

**It's late because... I'm in high school. I completely forgot about uploading it last night... (Not that anyone follows this anyway...)**

**Long Author's Note is long. Sorry about that too.**

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><p>Tuuli was in a very good mood.<p>

She had just gotten back from having her hair cut, and it felt clean and neat settled just beneath her shoulders. She came home to a clean house with a stew cooking that she'd put in that morning. Hanatamago had been to the dog groomer and smelled nice, and her flowers outside had just started blooming...

And Berwald was upset.

She had walked (practically skipped) inside to find Berwald sitting stoically in front of the TV. It had taken a while for her to notice when he wasn't happy about something, or generally in any sort of mood, but now she could tell, by the set of his jaw and the look in his eyes, that he was upset about something. She just didn't know what, and honestly it was killing her good mood to wonder.

But sadly she was a good person.

So she walked over to the Swede and sat down next to him, starting to lean against him as she knew he wouldn't want to actually tell her if she asked, so cuddling would just have to do.

And he promptly pushed her away.

No one pushes Tuuli.

She huffed and stood up, walking back around the couch to go to the kitchen, hitting Berwald in the side of the head on the way.

He deserved it, even if he wasn't in an amazing mood.

Alright, Tuuli had never really been rejected before. Anytime she hugged anyone they hugged back, and she was freaking _Santa Clause_. So when Berwald had apparently conspired to interrupt her good day, she wasn't about to let him get away with it.

Aforementioned Swede was currently looking at the kitchen, wide-eyed. Tuuli had just _hit him._ _Tuuli_ had just hit him. And on purpose!

"H'ney, s'm'thin' wr'ng?"

The Finn had snatched some chocolate ice cream out of the freezer and walked back out to idly watch whatever was on TV while eating it directly out of the box.

"Nothing; It's been a wonderful..." she dug the spoon into the ice cream as though she was upset with it, "...day."

Berwald, who also happened to like ice cream, noticed the treat, as well as the girl's off mood. The treat was enticing, even though he still was in no mood to talk. He decided to try his luck...

"C'n I h've—"

"No."

He sighed, and leaned back again.

Tuuli looked at him for a moment, "You can have some, if you tell me what's wrong." Sometimes her good nature liked to come out and annoy her, no matter how useful it could be.

He thought this new option over for a moment and tried to find the right words, "I j'st ran 'nto D'nm'rk t'd'y." He hadn't exactly meant to ruin Tuuli's day because of it, but the Dane had brought up some old wounds and losses that he hadn't felt like remembering. "'m sorry."

She sighed heavily, slightly pitying the Swede. Her good nature led her to go to the kitchen and retrieve another spoon before returning to sit next to him. He didn't try to push his luck and incur the wrath of the small Finn and was happy to have some of the cold treat.

"You didn't literally run into Denmark, did you?"

"'f I h'd I w'lda b'n h'ppy." he paused, "'nd I'd need new t'res."

"Just eat your ice cream..."


	8. Gullywasher

**Prompt: Gullywasher**

**Pairings: light DenNor**

**Genderbent: Norway**

**Summary: It's raining and Mathias is bored. Meaning Halldora is about as frustrated as she can get.**

**Useless Note: It was while writing this that I realized where the phrase "following suit" came from.**

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><p>"I'm boooored Norge!"<p>

"Shut up." responded Halldora, not looking up from her book.

"But Noooorrgeeee!"

With a distinct glare directed at nothing in particular, she closed her book to look at Mathias, "Why are you even here?"

"It's storming and I don't want to drive _all the way_ home." Translation: He took the bus because he still couldn't drive and didn't want to walk back to the stop.

"Watch TV."

"Satellite's out."

"Raid the pantry."

"I already did..."

"Take a nap."

"...and I found candy."

"I could knock you out."

"That would hurt..."

"Stop being difficult." Halldora said, throwing the book at her unsuspecting friend (?), hitting him in the shoulder. She stood up and walked into the kitchen, ignoring the Dane following her.

She opened the fridge, leaning down to look through some food. Mathias crossed his arms on top of the open door, resting his head on them. She glanced up at him and promptly shut the door, causing him to stumble.

Mathias then followed her to the sink, where she rinsed off the apple. Her "Mathias-is-about-to-be-stupid" sense went off just before he could speak (complain), and she sprayed him in the face with the faucet. The Norwegian walked away, taking a bite out of the apple and leaving the blonde man sputtering.

Feeling a bit merciful, she tossed a dishtowel back at him as she returned to her place on the couch and opened her book to continue reading.

Then the power followed the cable's example and everything was dark, nicely accented with a well-timed crack of thunder.

"See, Norge! This is karma." she couldn't see the tall man, but she knew he was close by.

"Shut it, Danmark."

Aformentioned Dane didn't heed her warnings, "But now I'm bored _and _I can't see anything."

"Go outside with a large metal object."

"But-"

"We are _not_ playing this game again." she interruppted, taking another bite out of her apple and following the familiar layout of the house to a drawer in the kitchen which should have contained two flashlights with fully charged batteries, but found only one.

"Danmark, have you seen another flashlight?" she called back into the living room.

His reply came from right behind her, making her yelp in surprise, "Nope... Wait..." he ignored the light punch to his arm as he paused, "No... Nope, haven't seen it!"

"Mathias."

"I might've been using it to make shadow puppets with Peter..." he said sheepishly, and, though she could barely see it, an idea had definitely just entered his head.

"No." was her only response as she took out the remaining flashlight and fiddled with it until it turned on, shining brightly in her eyes.

So the next time, she aimed for the general area of Mathias' eyes.

Ignoring the Dane's yelp of pain, the platinum haired girl diappeared back the way she had come, going up the stairs into a closet that contained, well... Everything she had meant to put away but had ended up just tossing in there because she used whatever it was fairly often.

So, camping gear and the bag of clothes from the last time she'd stayed with her brother and some canvas that she'd been meaning to try to paint for a while. Plus other things that she can't really describe without expletives of some sort.

Not _those_ things, you perverts.

Anyway, there was camping gear. More importantly, lanterns. She dug out two and looked up, spotting some candles. Unsure of how long the power would be out, and feeling a bit pessimistic after a particularly loud clap of thunder, she stood on her toes, flashlight between her teeth and lanterns under one arm.

She nearly dropped everything when she felt someone behind her, easily reaching up to get the candles.

"Calm down Hallie; you're so jumpy today!"

She elbowed Mathias in the stomach lightly, slipping out of the closet and back down the stairs. The Norwegian set the lanterns on the coffee table, turning them on so that the room was doused in a thin veil of light.

She saw the glint of a fairy somewhere on the ceiling, probably interested in the lights. It was dismissed just as the few shadows braving the rain outside were.

She heard Mathias' heavy steps on the staircase, "The matches are next to the fireplace."

"Okay..." he set the candles next to the lanterns. She settled down on the floor with her book with her back facing the couch, finally able to see the small print.

Mathias tossed some logs into the fireplace with some newspaper, lighting it before following suit with the candles.

The smell of smoke and candles was comforting and she sighed heavily, almost wanting just to doze while they waited out the storm. The thunder and lightning had faded considerably, but there was no telling when the storm would completely stop.

Mathias sat down nearby, "The candles are kinda romantic, hmm?"

"Shut up, Danmark."

He wasn't fazed, and adjusted so that she was practically in his lap, his legs on either side of her and his chest almost pressed against her back. She brought an elbow back toward his ribs, but he caught it with a sigh.

"What's your excuse for not letting me hold you _this time_."

This startled her more than it probably should have, and she tried not to show it.

She looked back over her shoulder, "What do you mean by that?"

He released her arm, which she jerked away immediately after, "You never let me hold you anymore."

"That's not true..." she muttered.

He moved to look at her from the side, "How many times have you hit me this evening?"

"You're being extra annoying..." she argued weakly, but then resigned herself to her fate. She could almost feel Mathias' smirk as he pressed his face into her long hair when she leaned back against him. His arms gently wrapped around her waist and he placed a light kiss to the side of her neck.

"Thanks..." he muttered into her ear.

There was one thing about Mathias that she didn't mind as much as she would admit: he could be perfectly content if someone was paying attention to him, something that even she could stand to do for him for a little while.

Especially when she was within striking distance, in case he tried something stupid.


	9. Snickerdoodle

**Prompt: Snickerdoodle**

**Rating: A hesitant K+, maybe T**

**Pairings: SuFin**

**Genderbent: Sweden**

**Summary: Tino's relationship with Valborga definitely isn't this routine.**

**A/N: Almost late, I'm sorry…**

**I picture Val as someone who would be better talking to just one person that she's close to, as opposed to large groups. And, really, who could resist poking at Tino's attitude in this? But I do feel like I didn't catch their dynamic the way I wanted to...**

**I don't really like how this turned out because it was a bit rushed, so I'm planning to take it down and revise it more. Probably if I finish two by next week, so I can keep up with the chapter count, I'll go ahead and take it down. (Why not just not post it? Because I'm teaching myself a lesson.)**

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><p>It was a fact of life that Tino's relationship with Valborga wasn't what most would consider normal, one being the former "Conqueror of the Baltic Sea" and the other, well, Santa Clause. At least, Tino was sure it wasn't <em>this <em>normal.

He had arrived at their small house to find Peter and Valborga in the kitchen, the former eating cookies and milk and the latter washing dishes. He gave the Swede a peck on the cheek and sat down to grab one of the (homemade, he noted) cookies and…

Why in the world was he reading the paper!

And, more importantly, why was a former Viking wearing a pink, frilly apron!

"W'nt someth'n t' drink?"

"Umm, sure. Peter, have you packed for your trip to England yet?" he asked.

Said micronation responded in a garbled way around one of the cookies.

"D'n talk with y'r mouth full."

He swallowed, "If I don't pack do I still have to go?"

"Yes."

So he reluctantly hopped out of the chair and walked upstairs, leaving his unfinished milk and crummy plate behind.

Valborga sat a glass of milk down in front of the Finn and started to clean up the plates, but Tino placed a hand on her arm.

"Sve… Did you make these cookies?"

"Ja, H'ng'ry 'nd I were…" she paused and, for once, Tino could read her mind. _Why was I trading recipes with Hungary?_

Except Tino couldn't help but imagine it in her mumbling, spoken voice.

"Exactly, and, well, look around."

Her eyes widened a bit in a way that could be interpreted as shock, and then she looked down and a light blush crossed her cheeks.

"Th's is Ice's…" she commented, realizing that it was supposed to be considerably longer than it was on her. Then she looked down at Tino, "Yer we'rin' a tie."

Tino looked down, "I'm wearing a freakin' _suit and tie, _Val."

"L'ks g'd."

"This is no time for your kinks! We're like an American 50s couple!"

"W're th' cookies b'd?"

Tino was taken off guard, but still responded, "No! They were delicious."

"F'nish yer cookie 'nd 'll believe you."

The Finn got a slightly annoyed look on his face when he saw the gleam of playfulness in Valborga's eyes. He then stuffed the cookie in his mouth.

"Seriously, we need to do something about this."

"'lright then."

"Sve, let's go and…" _What's something Francis would say? _"Rekindle our love!"

"'kay." Valborga nodded, sitting down and adjusting her glasses.

"So, we'll start by going hiking and hunting for our food. Then we can go tease Russia, and start… conquering and stuff." Tino listed, counting things off in his head.

"'nd stuff, sure."

"And… you aren't listening."

Sweden tried to say something like, "Of course I am." or a witty remark like, "I've suddenly become a feminist and want to make the plans." Instead, she just kissed him lightly, a hint of a smile on her face.

"N'pe."

Tino was incredibly tempted to prove that he was more masculine than some working husband with a neat haircut by kissing the hell out of Valborga right then and there, but visibly changed his mind about something before his body could respond.

"Okay, so how about this: I'll go change out of this suit, you can fix the dishwasher, and we'll get out our old Norse clothes and pretend this never happened." he explained as rationally as possible.

"Thought you s'd no k'nks."

"Hush, Val, I'm trying to save my Finnish masculinity."


	10. Origami

**Prompt: Origami**

**Pairings: DenNor**

**Genderbent: Denmark**

**Summary: Maria likes to believe in the silly little things sometimes.**

**Responses:**

**Dee: Thanks so much for reviewing again! I'm glad the last chapter turned out okay, at least for the near future.**

**I completely lost track of time, so sorry for another rushed piece. I blame high school. Random ending is random, but I like it.**

**By the way, I love making origami things; they're so adorable and procrastination worthy!**

Halldor and Erikur didn't blink when they opened the door to the Norwegian's house to find little pieces of paper, most ripped or crumbled, scattered around.

Noticing the particular shade of red, Halldor remarked, "Mia's here."

Erikur caught on to the fact the Dane must have a new project of some sort.

"I'm gone."

And Halldor didn't think any less of him for leaving.

So he was left to pick up the papers, all folded in one way or another, following the trail that led to his library. Sure enough, Maria sat on the floor cross-legged, focused on the small paper in her hands as she tried to fold it. Halldor was almost surprised to find she was having trouble, as her long fingers didn't typically falter in their intentions, similar to his own. Especially when she—

_Never mind that._ Halldor said as he stepped around some papers to stand closer to the Dane.

She didn't look up, so he started, "What are you doing?"

"Making paper cranes." she didn't look up, but gestured widely to a basket filled with small cranes, "It's kinda hard."

"Why do you need so many paper cranes?" he inquired a bit hesitantly.

"Kiku told me if I made one thousand, I could make a wish." The paper tore, she swore under her breath and looked up. "I'm having some trouble."

"You don't really believe that stuff, do you?"

"Is there a cave troll in here?"

"Of course not; a cave troll wouldn't fit through the door."

Halldor sat down and picked up a piece of paper from the tall stack next to the basket.

She finished a slightly crumpled bird and pulled out a marker, labeling the wing with a "78", and throwing a previously marked "77" into the basket. He had to admit that it was a smart idea, but also had to wonder how long she'd been at it. Probably since early that morning, when he knew she'd had to attend a conference in Berlin. He could picture her beginning during one of Ludwig's more monotone speeches, as most people brought along something to do during less meaningful events.

He knew how to make the cranes as well, and, after a couple of mishaps, was able to make a reasonable one, which he started to mark with a "79", but Maria stopped him.

"Don't you want your own wish?" she asked, honestly confused in regard to her boyfriend's reasoning in making the birds.

"Just pick something that I'd wish for too." he answered, looking away when a smile broke out on the other Nordic's face. Mind you, it was only to finish writing the number on the crane.

After a bit longer, Maria's patience began to wane. Halldor guessed that she would stop any time, though he had a feeling she'd start back up at some point. After another minute or two, just after he had written "98", she leaned over to whisper in his ear, lips almost close enough to touch.

"I have an idea…" She started, and continued at his smirk…

"Race you to 100!" she yelled into his ear, and he clapped a hand over her laughing mouth.

"Winner gets the cake in the fridge downstairs."

"Mmhmmph mmh mmph?"

"The _double molten _chocolate one."

Halldor saw Maria's eyes light up at the prospect of cake, even if it was just store bought to be warmed up in the microwave.

So, despite the bad feeling in the pit of his gut, he decided to do something sweet and cheesy. As in, the kind of stuff _Berwald_ always tried to do, just with better execution and less mumbling.

It's one of Halldor's personal ideals that when you do something, you should do it well.

He finished his little creation and, in his usual, plain voice, said, "Done."

Maria started to turn with a sad look on her face, when she noticed that instead of a bird, the Norwegian held a small, paper flower.

Her face lit up and her expression changed like a cartoon character. A wide smile spread across her face, and she practically tackled him in a hug, careful not to crush the flower. She stayed like that, partially on top of him, to press her face into his shoulder and say thank you way too many times for a simple flower.

He supposed that he would never know exactly how the mind of a woman works.

After a minute, they walked downstairs to get the small cake, planning to split the last one with a helping of ice cream.

The two Scandinavians ended up going to a nearby bakery to get some considerably less suspense-worthy cake, though it was fresh.

Far away from this, an Icelander with his brother's house key was eating some delectable chocolate cake.


	11. Gargoyle

**Prompt: Gargoyle**

**Pairings: SuFin**

**Genderbent: Finland**

**Summary: Tuuli tries to get Berwald's attention, but he's entirely oblivious for once.**

**I feel like this one may be too long, but I like how it turned out. I FORGOT TODAY IS THURSAY. Sorry for it being a little late...**

**To Dee: I think you should get an account here so I can thank you for reviewing outside of these notes, and not potentially embarrass you by stating that instead of worrying about missing an update you could just check back every Thursday or Friday, since I always update on Thursdays (sometimes a little late, though)!**

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><p>Tuuli, a little Finn who should be used to this sort of thing, was cold.<p>

And, due to the weather that constantly plagued the north in winter, also _had a_ cold.

She had been staying at Berwald's on-and-off for several different reasons, all equally small and worth little to most. Often it was because of travel times to meetings, a Russian stalking her, and simply for extra company.

...and she urges everyone to ignore the Swede's lack of conversational skills and just go with it.

Tuuli was wrapped in a thick blanket on the bed that she (sometimes reluctantly) shared with Berwald, as his fairly small house didn't have a "n'ce" guest bedroom, even though she knew he made most of the furniture himself and made sure everything was kept well. The Finn supposed it was offensive to turn him down.

There's a culture out there like that, she's sure of it.

It could be terrifying to wake up to his unintentionally intimidating gaze, but she had learned to keep her usual squeak of fear down long enough to slip away.

But on this day, she hadn't slept at all, but somehow didn't even notice the large Swede get up before her. She felt like she was freezing, but had woken up covered in blankets, topped with a large patchwork quilt that she'd seen lying around Berwald's house at one time or another.

Do you know the odd feeling of waking up while sick? How you think you should get up for some reason or another, though logic denies the possibility? That's what Tuuli felt, like she couldn't just lie there in bed.

So she got up and staggered to the door, leaning against the wall for support as she went towards the living room, happy for once that Berwald's favorite home outside Stockholm was only one-floor. It was spacious enough to fit himself as well as a couple of others if need be, and when she decided to bring Hanatamago along she had plenty of space as well, but was equally as comfortable to stay in alone.

So she stumbled along, reaching the doorway to the cozy living room and taking a moment to rest against the frame.

Berwald walked in at that moment, soaked up to his waist from digging the firewood currently cradled in his arms out of a pile of snow. Seeing Tuuli half-asleep against a wall, he hurriedly set the wood down by the already lit fireplace to dry and rushed to her.

"You sh'ldn't be up." he chastised, his voice more stern than he meant it to be, causing the sick Finn to flinch. He tried to compensate and scooped her up into his arms, but she squeaked at the contact with his cold clothes and he almost dropped her.

With that squeak, she learned the worst part of that cold.

She couldn't talk.

Tuuli tried to get a word or two out, but her throat hurt and she couldn't manage any sounds. Berwald looked at her for a moment, puzzled, before he realized what was wrong.

He set the Finn on the couch and disappeared up the stairs, returning with an armful of blankets at least as big as Tuuli herself! She protested, but the tall Swede was able to wrap her in a few of the blankets and pile the others around her in what resembled a bird's nest.

He stepped back to admire his work, and, entirely on accident, the smile on his face looked a bit menacing.

Tuuli was covered in blankets so that only her head could be seen, and others were piled around her small frame. What really got him, though, was the entirely unamused look on her red face.

He left her there to make some soup, glad to have an old recipe that tasted good and was good for those sorts of things. He considered trying the snow-covered backroads that lead to his small cabin, but decided that her fever was small enough to burn itself out after she got some food and rest.

On the way out, a tray topped with two bowls of soup balanced on one large hand, he decided to pick up a couple of non-prescription pills that could possibly do something to help.

He returned to find that Tuuli had pretty much just slumped over to one side, her head resting on the arm of the couch, still wrapped in the nest of blankets.

It figured that his smile at seeing that wouldn't be nearly as intimidating as before.

He set the soup down and gently nudged Tuuli awake again, finding that she hadn't been very deep in sleep yet. She fidgeted with the blankets until her arms found their way out, and pouted like a small child when Berwald adjusted them to cover her better. He was just glad she wasn't running away from his touch like she normally would, though he hated to see her sick.

…but Tuuli was just so _adorable._

Berwald's next thoughts primarily consisted of the phrase _I am a Viking._

The rest of the morning was spent in very different ways for the two Nordics. Berwald went about his normal chores, often stopping to check on his "w'fe" while restocking the fireplace or fixing a broken light fixture in the kitchen.

Tuuli slept.

And most of the "checking up on" Berwald did was stare for a few seconds and check her fever, which was barely noticeable anymore.

During one of his runs through the house, he noticed a slight draft. Poking around some of the windows in the living room, careful not to step on the sleeping Finn, he concluded that the leak must be coming from the roof. Not an uncommon occurrence, and not hard to repair.

He decided it was a good time to give Tuuli a bit more medicine for her throat, so he woke her up and made sure to add that he would be outside if she needed anything.

Well, it came out something like, "'m w'rkin' 'n th' roof." but he was pretty sure she understood what he meant.

And then he went outside to fix the roof so his little sick wife would be more comfortable.

…screw his Viking past; he was fixing the damn roof!

Now we'll just return to little Tuuli, who was currently feeling much better, now primarily just, well, cruddy. For a while, she dozed on the couch, idly flipping through a few magazines before she realized they were Swedish furniture magazines that she honestly didn't care about at that moment.

Then a lightbulb in the ceiling fan started to flicker, so she stood on slightly wobbly legs to turn off the entire fixture, she found that…

She's a lot shorter than she thought.

At first, the Finn just turned over on the couch, but eventually the flickering started to give her a headache, so she slipped on her heavy jacket and boots over her pajamas before going out into the yard.

Berwald happened to have just finished patching up the small hole, and was sitting on the roof, legs dangling off the side. The house wasn't very tall, and he rarely had to risk using a ladder because one side of the house was built into a hill, so it was a nice place to be. He rather liked spending time like that, and he had found a candy bar in his pocket that tasted rather good frozen.

Tuuli wasn't nearly as content.

She still couldn't talk, and was _just barely _outside the Swede's peripheral vision, and really didn't want to trudge through the snow. So she ended up waving her arms, trying to draw attention to herself. She tried to whistle, but that ended up hurting her throat. Finally, she just threw a badly made snowball at the oblivious giant.

_Man, my arms really are short._ She thought as the snow fell short.

The Swede looked up at the slight sound though, and his gaze eventually rested on the incredibly frustrated Tuuli.

Suddenly he had a feeling of what his face must look like to be so intimidating, because she was _mad._

He wrapped up the rest of the candy before carefully making his way down from the roof, deciding he would find out what he had done when he reached the Finn.

Which was why it was a bit surprising for her to just fall against him, exhausted, and promptly hobbled alongside him to the door.

She had been feeling better, but then after exerting herself in trying to get Berwald's attention she felt sick again.

After shedding their wet clothing, Tuuli sat back down on the couch and Berwald adjusted a lightbulb that had just come loose. The Finn then picked up the remote to the small TV and flipped to an old American movie about spies, inviting Berwald to sit with her.

The Swede left a slightly confused Finn for a moment before returning with a bowl of chips and sitting down on the other side of the couch. He was somewhat startled, but no less content, when she leaned against him and let him wrap the blankets over their shoulders to keep out what cold they couldn't help but feel in the winter.

She claimed it was so he couldn't miss her if she needed something.

…even though she fell asleep again before the movie ended.


	12. Fuzzikan

**IMPORTANT NOTE: Due to school and the fact I'm not going to be camping again until spring, updates will be moved to Saturday nights. (I'm on US Eastern Standard Time, so that could be Sunday for some people.)**

**Prompt: Fuzzikan**

**Pairings: SuFin**

**Genderbent: Finland**

**Summary: Tuuli may or may not be afraid of storms. Berwald just isn't afraid to admit it.**

**I still have so many ideas for this pairing… It has so much potential! Thus, brave!Tuuli emerges.**

**Another note at the end, which can be skipped.**

* * *

><p>"Storm's comin'.<p>

"I know."

It was just a fact of life to Tuuli that Berwald was terrified of storms. After one bad instance while sailing near England as a Viking, he just started dreading them. Granted, he didn't bawl his eyes out or hide in a secret underground bunker, but he tended to stay inside in a small room with the blinds shut. You couldn't even really tell he was scared at all, unless he said it to your face. Sometimes more than once, because for the longest time she thought he'd said he didn't like _storks._ Which made no sense at all.

After a while, she made a note to just stop trying to have meaningful conversations with Berwald while she had an ear infection.

Anyway, Tuuli usually just made cookies or something to distract him so he wouldn't start pacing or something.

This time it didn't quite work like that.

You see, Berwald was currently sprawled out half-asleep on the couch. It was just one of _those _days, where they just watched movies and whatever hockey game was on because they thought it would start raining any minute.

So, since the Swede had brought up the elephant in the room, Tuuli started to stand up and let Hanatamago in.

"Dog's in."

"Thanks." she sighed, and turned back to stand over Berwald. "Hungry?"

He shook his head and sighed, "Nah."

Tuuli frowned. He wasn't concerned over anything, she could tell by the way he spoke, and wasn't going into the study of her large house to read or something for the duration of the storm. He was… snoring.

Well… that meant _something._

Her frown lessened and she tossed a blanket over his relaxed form after deciding it wasn't worth it to ask him to move.

It was while sipping her coffee a few minutes later that she realized something else.

She was also terrified of storms.

The Finn had been working through storms with something else entirely on her mind in the past. It had been a while since she had lived completely on her own, though she was entirely independent, and providing for the Swede had apparently made her forget…

She had once been trapped in a cave during a storm that alternated between snow and lightning strikes for several days. It had been years, possibly when she was still physically a child.

It started when she began to dread the next boom of thunder.

Then she decided that the curtains could be close.

And finally she was huddled in a blanket sitting in front of the couch, trying to focus on Berwald's light snoring.

It was at the point where she really wanted to go get her Mp3 player or find Hanatamago, but really _really_ didn't want to get up.

After a particularly loud crash, she almost ended up on Berwald's lap when she jumped. She practically shrieked when an arm wrapped around her waist and hauled her onto the couch.

"Wh't's wrong?" asked a tired voice that she instantly recognized.

"N-nothing." she responded weakly.

Berwald situated them so that she was sitting next to him, sitting up himself to lean his head on her shoulder.

"Yer lyin'."

"Maybe a little…"

He sighed heavily, "Sleep h'lps."

"I can't…" she said, squirming a bit.

He fell to the side, head on the arm of the couch. Now, since he had more than a few pounds on her, she fell too. She moved a bit, but the arm around her waist tightened and pressed her into his firm chest. After a moment, she decided the warmth there was much too comfortable to try to get out of. She snuggled deep into the cushion, allowing herself to be covered up with a very familiar quilt.

Thunder struck and they both jumped a bit. A chuckle arose from Berwald's throat, Tuuli's high laughter following soon after.

The next thing she knew, Hanatamago wanted back out, Berwald's stomach was growling, and her coffee was cold.

* * *

><p><strong>Fuzzikan fuzzikan fuzzikan. That's one of my all time favorite words, but I kinda doubt anyone knows it exists outside of this little mountain. Anyway, I also use the word "Gullywasher" to describe a bad storm, but they aren't the same. My mom gave some amusing commentary regarding this that I'd like to share! (This can be ignored unless you're looking for some Southern rambles.)<strong>

"**A fuzzikan is like a bad storm with strong winds and rain, but also with thunder and lightning and all that stuff. A gullwasher and toad strangler are similar; it's when it rains really hard, causing the water to stand. Well, see the gullwasher makes it rush through the gullies. You can't say ditch washer because that looks too much like... dishwasher."**


	13. Hoodlum

**Prompt: Hoodlum**

**Pairings: About that… It's **_**hinted**_** at, but no one's "in a relationship" as of yet.**

**Rating: T, but it's for humor**

**Warnings: Brief nudity and more than enough cliché fluff to make up for the change in schedule and lack of an update next week.**

**Genderbent: Norway, Iceland, Finland**

**Summary: Mathias has a plan. To make matters worse, he drags Berwald along for it.**

**(If you don't know already: Ruotsi is the Finnish word for Sweden.)**

**Yes, I know how cliché this is. That's part of the humor.**

**NOTE: Possibly no update next week because I'm going camping for fall break. If I manage to write something by Wednesday, I'll update then.**

* * *

><p>Berwald and Mathias were huddled behind a bush that happened to be located behind Tuuli's house, close to the sauna in the backyard.<p>

Obviously, something interesting was happening.

"Wh't're we doin' here?" Berwald murmured to the clearly excited Dane next to him. He'd had a bad feeling about tagging along, but was honestly a bit curious about his exact plans.

Later he would smack himself for not guessing them.

"Shh! Just wait for it!"

"D—"

"Be patient Waldo, I know what I'm doing! Just watch." He just didn't tell him what he was supposed to be watching.

After a minute, Mathias had clearly grown bored of waiting.

"Okay okay, I got the idea from Turkey after he visited one of Japan's onsen things. You know how the girls randomly decide to hang out and stuff?" he whispered hurriedly.

"Yeah…"

"Well, do you know what they're _really _doing?"

"…they go t' Tuuli's sauna…" at Mathias' odd look he added, "They t'ld me…"

The Dane reeled back, "Well why wouldn't they tell me?" But then Berwald clapped a hand over his mouth as he noticed something at the sauna door. Suddenly a sound reached them…

_Giggling?_

Sure enough, a few seconds later Brynja was practically tossed out into the snow, and shrieked when she hit the cold, snow covered ground. Halldora followed to help her up, but was pulled down as well. Tuuli, in on the idea, didn't have half as much trouble before they all ran back inside, the Finn slamming the door behind them.

They were all stark naked.

Berwald's eyes were wide as he ducked down, but his gaze was fixed on the door.

Mathias, on the other hand, was smiling and holding back a nosebleed. Norge, _his _Norge, was giggling!

"This w's a b'd id'a…" The Swede said after the laughing faded a bit.

"Nah, you're just a prude!" replied the other blonde.

_No, I'm scared of getting caught and don't mind admitting it! _thought Berwald, though all that came out was a grunt of sorts.

When Mathias started to say something that could either have been lewd or smug, Berwald shoved snow in his face.

"Well if you don't like it just leave!" he whispered too loudly to really be whispering.

The Swede thought for a moment. Now that he knew what was coming, he might've wanted to stick around, but still… This was _Tuuli_, and it honestly felt a bit wrong (and possibly life-threatening).

Oh yeah, it was bad to spy on the other girls too.

He sighed and readjusted himself, "'m goin'." he muttered, his conscience getting the better of him.

"Do you want me to take picture?" Mathias joked. "See ya, Waldo!"

"Hnn…" responded the taller man as he stood up.

He stood; ready to start running back, and Mathias started to look back when…

"_Ruotsi!_"

_Damn._

Mathias, his overdeveloped sense of self-preservation finally kicking in, tried to hurry the Swede to start running, but the taller man was a deer caught in headlights at that point.

Tuuli leaned inside and ripped a towel off a rack and putting on some shoes before stomping over, wrapping it around herself. Brynja peeked out and immediately yelled something in Icelandic upon seeing the tall blonde who still stood frozen.

By the time Halldora and Brynja got there, the Finn was standing right in front of Berwald, looking up at him with a scowl. Mathias sat frozen on the ground, but looked away from the two when the sisters walked up.

"Oh… Hey Halldora… Nice weather, huh?" he said as the stoic woman came into view. "Look, I—" A glare silenced him. He tried to stand up.

"No." Said the Norwegian and he stayed put.

"Berwald, I can understand _him_ doing this," the Finn pointed to Mathias, who, much to Brynja's amusement, squeaked, "but why are you here?"

The Swede in questioned thought for a moment, trying to put the words together to answer, "I didn't know…"

"You mean you couldn't even guess?"

"Well…" And now he would either sound stupid or perverted. What a wonderful turn of events.

Brynja wouldn't listen to either option and spoke up, "It doesn't matter, does it? Let's just go on with the revenge?"

Mathias hopped up then, before Halldora could do anything, "Look ladies, let's all agree that this is just one of my character flaws and Waldo didn't mean to be such a pervert. No harm done, right?"

Halldora whacked him over the head.

Tuuli smiled a bit evilly, "Bryn, since you brought it up, any ideas for that revenge?"

"Maybe…"

She whispered something to her fellow Nordic, who nodded. Berwald caught a few words and immediately punched Mathias into the bush, seeing as how he wouldn't be able to later.

* * *

><p>And then Mathias and Berwald were sitting back to back, hands tied together, on Tuuli's cold hardwood floors, stripped to their boxers and undershirts.<p>

Obviously, they were freezing.

Not so obviously, they were covered in glitter (courtesy of Brynja).

How they got there? Well, the men weren't entirely sure. If they asked, Halldora would just smile a bit and say, "Magic."

They were definitely tackled at some point, though.

The girls watched them from corners of their eyes in the kitchen, sipping some hot chocolate and idly talking. (They would have had coffee, but it was fairly late.)

"Hey, it's not _that_ bad."

"Yes it is."

Mathias craned his head around a bit, "I mean it was worth it."

"No it wasn't."

"Are you saying you didn't like seeing Tuuli naked?"

Berwald didn't respond, looking away from both Mathias and the kitchen.

"Well I for one thought the plan was mostly _genius_! It worked so well because Turkey had to go into the onsen, but we just had to wait for the girls to come to us. Not only that, but I got to see Norge naked! Did you know she had a—?"

The Swede was thankful whatever Halldora had thrown was large enough to knock Mathias out as well as scatter more glitter everywhere.

The girl's started to go up the stairs, which Berwald happened to be facing. Halldora went up last, and as she did he asked, "C'n I 't least h've ma socks?"

She took one look at him, threw the balled up socks into his lap, and followed the other two upstairs.

Berwald sighed heavily.

_Oh well. They'll come back. Tuuli wouldn't leave me here all night._

…_would she?_

His worries were soothed when the Finn hurried downstairs a few minutes later. At first she just stepped around them, but when she came back with a tray of food, she leaned down and, though with an almost reluctant look on her face (likely from intimidation, but Berwald didn't know that), whispered to the freezing Swede, "I know you didn't mean it."

She pecked him lightly on the temple before blushing heavily and dashing back up the stairs.

Sadly, Mathias had regained his senses and was done pouting for the moment.

"Aww! Waldo and Tuuli sitting in a— Oof!"

_Wow, her aim never gets rusty…_

And that, my friends, could very well be called the moral of this story.


	14. Hermitized

**Prompt: Hermitized**

**Rating: K+**

**Pairings: DenNor, SuFin**

**Genderbent: Finland, Denmark**

**Summary: Erikur is sick of seeing couples, so he decides to spend some time alone. (And fails.)**

**Dee: Is that a serious question...?**

**I guess I don't really show it with this story, but Iceland is actually one of my favorite characters, and I adore listening and speaking Icelandic, even though I'm better with Swedish and Spanish. Probably because I speak Castilian Spanish, and Icelandic also tends to have a lot of "th" (z and soft c in Castilian) sounds as well. Ramble ramble ramble.**

**Now that you've seen me ramble, on with the story!**

* * *

><p>Have you ever been that guy (or girl) who always seemed to be stuck around couples, without actually having a significant other yourself?<p>

Erikur is not only the personification of Iceland, but of this phenomenon as well.

Wonderful thought, isn't it?

So, after spending a week with his fellow Nordics at a meeting in Thailand, he decided to spend some time alone in his large and wonderfully _empty _house, likely only letting in his puffin for company. He planned to finish reading a book, and possibly go into town for a little while. That was a good day, in his mind, a day for relaxing, and not worrying about anything. Especially. Not. Romance.

The sun was already up when he first stood and stretched, glad not to have Maria tossing pillows his way for being the first one bothering to move. Then Tuuli would—

_No, not focusing on that._

He sighed heavily, not changing out of his pajamas (nothing special, just an undershirt and loose, but warm, blue pants) and content not having to worry about looking decent for once. He appreciated nice things, but pajamas are always better for lazy days, which was what he would have until he mustered the will to leave the house. So, eyes practically closed, he made his way downstairs to make coffee.

And then the phone rang.

He sighed heavily and hurried into the kitchen and picked up the phone, "Hello?"

"Oh, hey honey. Just thought I'd tell you I'll be home late. Make sure the kids—" a woman's voice said.

"I'm sorry ma'am, but you have the wrong number." he said as politely as he could. What a great start to his annoyance-free day!

The woman hung up with a mumbled and embarrassed apology, saying something about pay phones.

After that, he opened up the cabinet to get a mug for his coffee, picking out a supposedly plain white one.

As it turned out, the other side was covered in hearts as well as his brother and Maria's names.

That went in the trash.

So, shoving some leftover Valentine's chocolate out of the way of the instant coffee, he tried to start his day. A light breakfast would be good, and he could pick something up in town later.

Yes, he could salvage his romance-free, relaxing day.

One of the waffles might have come out of the iron looking a bit like a heart, but he bit it in half and it was fine.

After he finished eating, he went back upstairs and shrugged on his usual outfit. Just as he slipped his coat on, the doorbell rang.

He hurried downstairs, careful in socked feet, and looked out the window to see who had suddenly arrived.

The Icelander almost considered waking Mr. Puffin up to attack the guy.

"Excuse me, I have this delivery for a Ms. Bryn—"

"Wrong house." Erikur said, and the man's head snapped up from the small card he was reading.

You have to understand now, that the man's other hand held a bouquet of flowers and a big bunch of pink helium balloons that just so happened to be shaped like hearts.

"Oh, I'm sorry, do you know where…" he met the white-haired man's gaze (glare), "Ah, I'm sure it's nearby."

"Yes, it probably is." Erikur stated, his face still giving away his frustration despite his tone.

He felt a bit bad, scaring that guy like that, but it couldn't be helped. He pulled on his boots and hurried outside to warm up the car.

The radio started playing a love song right away.

Ignoring the pain in his knuckles that may or may not have come from punching the radio, he drove into the small town he lived near. While it was more practical to live near Reykjavik, he had recently decided, in a teenager-like fit of "rebellion" as his brother said, to live closer to a smaller town.

He was quite thankful to find that there was a small café right across the street from a quaint little bookstore that was perfect for wasting time in. And thus he stayed there.

Getting out of the car, he noticed that there seemed to be a lot more couples than usual inside. His face fell and he sighed when the sign, in his own language and everything, displayed in big letters:

_Special Discount for Couples, Buy One Meal Get Another Free!_

He planned to propose a ban on all random sales like that the next time he spoke to his boss.

But he really wanted a sandwich, so he went in.

"Yes, what would you like?" said the, admittedly cute, girl at the register.

"Well..." he noticed that the girl was looking over his shoulder, and realized something, "I'm here alone."

"Oh! I'm sorry." she said with a sheepish smile, "Go ahead."

_Well, maybe it wouldn't be so bad to get a cute girl's number… _He thought as he ordered. She smiled and looked entirely friendly, and he expected her to start flirting any second until…

"Hey sweetie, I'm on break. Be back in a few." said the man who happened to be working at the next register as he left, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"Okay!" she turned back to Erikur, "And will there be anything else?"

"Yes, I'll take that to go."

After eating in the car (and spilling some of his soda on the passenger seat), he walked over to the bookstore, eyes avoiding anything remotely romantic.

As he entered, the bored teenager, who he knew to be the son of the owner, gave a small wave, which he returned with a sympathetic smile and shrug.

He turned to a literature section that he frequented, wanting to brush up on some American authors before the next meeting, which would be held in New York.

He found himself face to face with the Young Adult Readers. Most notably, slightly creepy romance novels about… he wasn't even going to try to guess what that was. Needless to say, the store had rearranged some things.

After some wandering, which didn't take long in the tiny shop, he found the books he was looking for and started to check out.

Seeing that the teenager was on the phone, he politely remained quiet but continued to make his purchase. He was in no hurry, so it wasn't a problem.

"Yeah baby, I'll be there." Erikur winced when he realized the conversation he had walked in on… "Aww, I would never do that! …I thought we agreed that was… Wait, that _was_ you, right? Oh, wait! I didn't mean—"

Erikur, who was stuck waiting while the fellow Icelander practically just watched the stack of books, decided he ought to attract a little attention, "Having some problems?"

"Yeah... Man, I'm bad at this sort of thing." He responded, sighing and putting the books in a plastic bag.

He reluctantly offered, "Flowers always help."

"Thanks."

He left the building and decided to walk around the block before heading home, in case some idea hit him on the way there or back.

"Hey, Ice!~"

Well, it could have been worse.

Oh wait, there was Sweden. It was worse.

He offered a small, tired smile, "Hey Fin, Sve. What are you doing here?"

Finland offered a bag, "We were coming to visit and just stopped by at this cute little shop!"

Sweden grunted.

"Oh, I see. I was just on my way home, so…"

Tuuli's eyes brightened with an idea, "Hey, there was a café we passed, do you want a late lunch or something?"

"I stopped there earlier, actually."

Berwald seemed to visibly relax. In fact, Erikur was beginning to notice just how tired the Swede looked. He smiled a bit inside when he remembered Tuuli's inability to sleep on airplanes. Knowing Berwald, he may have even felt bad for her being awake on her own and entertained her for the entire trip.

It would have been rude to send them away.

So he spent the rest of the day with his fellow Nordics, making various foods and discussing hockey.

All this accompanied by random cuddling, kissing, giggling, done on Tuuli's part, and blushing, by Berwald. Erikur just spent some extra time digging things out of cabinets. After all, they were his friends and he couldn't really kick them out at random. Well, he could, but that would lead to Tuuli telling Maria who would tell Halldor who would call him and give a lecture disguised as a friendly call, and a subsequent re-visit by either Tuuli or Berwald.

In short, it wasn't worth it.

So he put up with the couple and half-ignored the romantic comedy they watched while a batch of cookies was in the oven. It wasn't so bad; they were nice to hang out with. Better than Halldor and Maria draped over one another.

And he and Berwald made steak, and he had needed an excuse to cook those for a while now.

…and he just liked steak.

So, after a delicious dinner, the Swede and Finn left and made him promise to visit soon.

Erikur sighed and flopped down on the couch, grimacing when he turned on the TV to find another romantic movie on in place of his favorite show. He turned it off and went upstairs to his room, pulling out one of the books from earlier.

He would just start again the next day. No problem, right? He could sleep-in again, make a big brunch, maybe drive to Reykjavik for the day.

A hot shower ended the day well enough, though he was honestly still disappointed it hadn't turned out the way he wanted.

His last coherent thoughts before falling asleep regarded his bad luck, but he was ready to get over it.

* * *

><p>It figured that he wake up to find a Dane sprawled out on his couch.<p>

And not just _any _Dane, this was _the _Dane. His brother would no doubt be somewhere nearby, even if he wasn't in the house.

He didn't explode like he normally would, no; he had an idea that left a smirk on his face.

"Last call!"

"Wha…? Wait-!"

Now there was a Dane sprawled out on his floor.


	15. Mushmelon

**Prompt: Mushmelon**

**Pairings: SuFin, DenNor, mentions of others**

**Summary: The World Conference is ditched for the nearby beach. The Nordics have trouble staying in character.**

**Genderbent: Finland, Norway**

**Not gonna lie, I actually like the note at the end better than all of this. I might write something entirely based around that note.**

* * *

><p>No one <em>actually<em> wanted to go to the beach.

Now, before you consider typos as the reason, let me explain.

Mathias was hungover.

Berwald hated sand.

Tuuli was jet-lagged.

Halldora hated the heat.

And Erikur didn't want to be stuck with his insane "family" all day.

But now you're asking, "Why are they at the beach?" And this time, it isn't for fanservice.

The World Conference was being held in Sardinia, and Romano had, as he would claim later, "…graciously allowed everyone to spend a day on the beach."

In short, curses were said, lamps were thrown, and the casualties included the structural supports of the building.

And now we'll set up the scene.

While everyone was having fun*, Berwald had migrated over to a fairly deserted area when he noticed that Halldora had set up her towel and umbrella. He sat down next to her lawn chair, where she looked practically asleep.

Mathias was nearby, slouched uncharacteristically and calling unenthusiastically, "Hey, Hallie! Let's make a sand castle!"

"No. It's too hot."

His hand fell from where he was waving it, and he half-jogged over. "Okay…" He really wanted to do something, since he hadn't been to the beach in a while (where it was warm, at least), but didn't want to actually… do anything. So he sat (on the sand, Berwald grimaced) under the umbrella as well, suddenly looking _much _more comfortable.

He was napping in seconds.

Trying to escape the sheer _awkwardness_, Berwald stood when he saw Erikur walking from the beach to the parking lot nearby.

He jogged over and asked the first thing that came to mind, "Where's Tuuli?"

The Icelander shrugged and seemed to hurry away much faster.

"Wait a s'cond…" he said, "Ya sure?"

Erikur beckoned him over to the cars, "Yes, I'm sure. Not that I don't like you, but I'm kind of hiding from Halldora right now, okay?"

"Why?" he asked.

"I want to hang out with Michael and… You don't know them that well. Hong Kong and Seychelles." he muttered the comment, "…only ones my age…" He hurried over to a car and pulled out a cantaloupe and a watermelon, obviously intending to share it with his friends.

"Ah, okay." he responded, and noticed something in the car next to them… "Tuuli?"

"Huh?" Erikur looked into the car as well, and saw the sleeping Finn inside. The car was running and a window was down, and she was fast asleep.

"Hey, Fin…" Berwald said, going around to the driver's side and shaking her shoulder lightly, "W'ke up…"

"Hmm?" she said, "Is it over yet?"

A flash of a smile, though Erikur swore it was a grimace, crossed Berwald's face. He opened the door and, without warning, scooped her up. "Ya can come s't w'th th' rest o' us, 'kay?"

She squeaked and nodded.

Halldora spotted Erikur walking back from the parking lot, and did that whole "Get over here." look with her eyes.

Needless to say, he found his way over to there as well after handing his friends the large fruits.

"What is it?"

"Bury Mathias for me, please."

He crossed his arms, "Why can't you do it?"

She had an oddly expressive, and pained, look, "It's too hot…"

Berwald piped in as he set the still half-asleep Tuuli on the beach towel, "I got it."

And that was almost the highlight of the day.

That would come later though, when they got to go back inside.

(And possibly left the Dane outside, still asleep.)

* * *

><p><strong>*Alfred was annoying Arthur who was trying to have a conversation with Roderich who was watching Elizaveta** who was trying to kill Gilbert who was almost drowning Antonio who was trying to put crabs in Francis' speedo who was attempting to molest Yekaterina who was hiding behind Ivan who was burying Raivis in sand who was yelling for help to Eduard who was trying to stop Feliks who was forcing a bikini on Toris who was asking for help from Alfred but it was actually Matthew, who was laughing at it all.<strong>

****For the record, it was both because she was wearing a slightly revealing swimsuit **_**and**_** because she was trying to kill the Prussian.**


	16. Juxtaposed

**Prompt: Juxtaposed**

**Genderbent: Finland, Norway, Iceland**

**Rating: T**

**Summary: That moment when you're stuck with that guy that you really hate but can't do anything about it. In other words, Berwald and Mathias.**

**By the time you see this, I'll have Skyrim~**

**No update next week because I'll be on vacation for Thanksgiving!**

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><p>To any bystanders, it looked like an extreme staring contest.<p>

Actually, that's a pretty good description.

We'll go back a bit.

Halldora, Mathias, Brynja, Berwald, and Tuuli had all agreed to go out to eat after a meeting. Thus, they were sitting in one of Alfred's "Italian" restaurants, and everything was, in Nordic terms, normal. Brynja hadn't arrived just yet, but the bread had already come out and they were getting ready to order. At Tuuli's insistence, they'd sat outside at one of the half-comfortable tables.

Halldora hung up her phone, "Crap… Bryn's car broke down a few blocks away."

"I'll go and-"

"No." She punched the Dane. "I'll go get her."

"We'll have to take Berwald's car, since you guys…"

"…I liked the sports car and Al said I could have it…"

"D'nm'rk's n't ridin' in mah car." Ever prepared, Berwald had left a car in Washington D.C. after America lost a bet with him and gave him a place through means… unknown.

Anyway, Tuuli and Halldora decided to go help with the car. Halldora was originally going to go with Berwald - she insisted on helping her sister – but Mathias shot that down. So Tuuli went instead.

"We'll be right back!" said the Finn, giving Berwald a kiss on the temple.

"Aww, Waldo _can_ keep a girl!"

And so, Berwald and Mathias' "dinner" together started with the former blushing and the latter clutching his head.

Tuuli really can hit hard.

"So… Berwald, Waldy, Waldo, Berry, old buddy." he smirked, "Aww, no names for your old friend, Mumbly?"

"Idiot."

"That was surprisingly well-enunciated."

"D'n't care."

"That's more like it!"

And then the conversation… stopped.

Well, on Berwald's end. Mathias kept rambling.

"You know, you should be nicer to me. Hallie is my girlfriend as much as Tuuli's friend, which makes me your… friend by association. Yeah, that's it. So be nice. And you know, you should appreciate good…"

And then Berwald stopped listening.

He happened to miss the phrase at the end of the Dane's rant, "…well then fine! I won't talk either." And then looked like a pouting child trying to maintain eye contact. Berwald sighed and took a sip of his water, happening to look away to do so.

"Hah! I win."

That did it. "Nah, I didn't st'rt yet." He wasn't about to lose to Mathias, that was for sure.

"Fine then. Go!"

Now that I think about it, it _was_ an extreme staring contest.

That is, until the girls got back. Berwald couldn't stop staring at Tuuli and, well, let's just say Mathias couldn't stare at _anything_ for a little while.

"I told you not to cause a scene."


	17. Toddling

**Prompt: Toddling**

**Pairings: DenNor, mentions of SuFin**

**Genderbent: Norway, Finland**

**Summary: Little Iceland likes to watch his **_**stora systir**_**, perhaps a little too much.**

**Oh goodness I love Little!Iceland. I love big Iceland too, but something about dem sleeves is just so adorable~! I want to pick him up and give him cookies!**

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><p>Iceland toddled through the massive, cold house, sleeves dragging on the ground. He liked Denmark's house. It was brighter than his sister's, and people always seemed to be singing. And it was warmer than his home-place, as the only thing he could remember was cold.<p>

So he just dragged his little sleeves along to Denmark's room, close enough to his so he could find his way, but for some reason he could never quite make out what was going on.

Iceland didn't mind though; that meant he could steal sweets from Norway when she stayed over with Denmark, and they would never know.

The door was cracked, and he could see light come into the dim hallway.

"Mathias! Calm down!" Norway didn't usually yell like that…

"Halldora, you don't understand! He just… left! He took Tuuli and left!"

Finland was very nice. She gave him weird sweets sometimes and always smelled good. He liked it when she read him stories and he could look at words from her funny language.

"Forget Ber—" Norway was calm again.

"Oh, so you're still on human name formalities with him?"

Iceland hesitantly peeked in, sensing something was wrong. Norway must have been cold, since she was wearing a lot less than she should have been. Denmark hovered over her, intimidating the shorter nation.

Norway hesitated, biting her lip, "I mean Sweden." Her voice was much quieter than usual.

Sweden was scary, but he always gave him fish and wrapped him up in big furs when they had to travel in the cold. He mumbled some things and Iceland couldn't always understand, but as long as he didn't look the Swede in the eye it felt like he was talking to a big, friendly bear-grandpa.

It was funny, Finland would sit on his lap, and Iceland would sit on hers, and he'd still be able to wrap his big arms around them! Denmark always laughed, even though they didn't get along so well.

"Of course you did." Denmark scoffed. He turned away from her, "And do you call me _Kongeriget Danmark_ now?"

"Calm—"

"What was that? Weren't you just leaving?"

"Let. Me. Finish." she enunciated, drawing herself up to full height and causing Denmark to take a step back. "I'll leave if you don't calm the hell down and go back to being that happy-go-lucky moron that I remember."

He looked taken aback and thoroughly conflicted. Wide eyes searched for something in his counterpart's, but he finally gave up and stuttered out a reply, "I… I need something strong…" He looked down, running a hand through his hair and walking toward the corner of the room.

"You used to be something strong."

His head snapped back, and in less than three strides he was practically pressed against the Norwegian. He couldn't quite make words, and Norway knew she had said something she could very well be about to regret. She just barely showed any fear.

Denmark, his movements sharp and careful, leaned down to whisper something in Norway's ear. He left a small kiss to her neck, but she didn't move a single muscle.

Iceland didn't understand any of it. He just toddled away, holding his hands over his head so he wouldn't trip. He was in his bed, but he was pretty sure Norway must have seen him before she came in.

(It dawned on him later that she probably couldn't have seen him or didn't want to, because of the tears.)

He heard something odd coming from her bed on the other side of the room. She'd insisted that he learn independence by staying away, but sometimes he snuck in her bed and she would let him lie right next to her like she did when they were on the road in the cold winter.

Norway was muttering something to herself, and he caught the end. "He didn't want to hurt me…"

So when he heard that odd, choking sound that took him back to that one time when he fell and hurt his knee, he went to climb into his sister's bed. It was taller than his, and he had to grip the blankets and skins to pull his little body up.

Norway almost pushed him off, but relented and lifted an arm.

"_Stora systir_…" he murmured as he crawled over, burying his face in her collarbone.

"_Lille bror_…" her voice cracked into a sob.

This wasn't a normal night. His sister was crying. His sister, the Viking, his caretaker, that warmth when he felt like he was going to turn to ice, was sobbing into her pillow.

So he patted her head and stroked her hair with his fat, uncoordinated fingers, but to him it was like when she ran her long fingers through his hair and played games with his little hands, or picked him up to sit on her shoulders. (Denmark did that too.)

She wasn't crying when Iceland woke up the next morning. He was happy about that.


	18. Shinroaster

**Prompt: Shinroaster**

**Pairings: SuFin, DenNor (mostly implied on both accounts)**

**Genderbent: Finland, Norway**

**Summary: It's always fun to go camping. Oh wait, then this story would be boring.**

**I'm sorry this is late! It was my friend's birthday, and then I had actual work to do…**

**I don't go into making snares because I don't quite know enough about the subject. I also feel like I spend too much time making fun of the characters here, but that's what Hetalia is for…**

**Dee: Thanks for reviewing!**

**baby Godzilla: Sorry this is so late, but thanks!**

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><p>Mathias was <em>not<em> in a good mood.

He was even pouting about it. It was a habit, actually, from trying to annoy Halldora. Anyway, things just weren't going so well.

They had decided to go camping while visiting… America's brother, they're pretty sure, and Mathias was lost. There was a trail, and apparently he took the wrong way when he hit a fork in the road – possibly not even a fork, just a clearing – and now he was wandering around with no cellphone service, absolutely sure that he had see _that tree_ before.

_Or maybe the tree over there._

_Maybe that one…_

_Well, crap._

_Oh yeah, that's bear crap alright._

_I'M GONNA DIE OUT HERE._

Not that he said any of that out loud, mind you.

Anyway, he was walking in the direction Berwald—

_BERWALD._

_That's it! He must have given me the wrong way! That damn Swede, I'll have to…_

_Oh wait, there's the trail…_

Well I'll tell you right away that the trail would eventually connect to the one he was supposed to be on.

Eventually.

* * *

><p>Tuuli and Berwald, on the other hand, had already set up camp. Two large tents, one for the girls and one for the guys, were already set up. Tuuli stood from the last tent pole to inspect her handiwork.<p>

"I'm gettin' f'rwood." She jumped at the deep voice.

"Oh, Berwald..." she sighed, "Okay."

Halldora peaked through the trees just then, stepping into the little clearing. Berwald had easily pointed it out, and it was just off the trail.

Aforementioned Swede gave a quick "Hej" before heading out for firewood. He had planned to wait for Mathias and get help, but the Dane hadn't shown up yet. That wasn't something to worry about, though.

_It's not like I haven't found my way through worse._

"Not bad, not bad." Halldora reinforced, looking around. She leaned down to pet Hanatamago, who had run out to see the visitors.

"Where's Erikur?" asked Tuuli.

"Halldora! Can't I get a little help?" They heard the Icelander's voice and when Tuuli caught sight of him, she nearly burst out laughing.

Little Erikur was carrying his stuff, his sister's stuff, the supplies they had promised to provide, plus an extra bag. His arms and back were covered at that point, and the only image Tuuli could come up with was that of their pack mules during their Viking days, hence the laughter.

"Halldora, maybe we should help him…" Tuuli managed to say.

Even the Norwegian was hiding a smile, "Yes, we wouldn't want him to drop anything."

Tuuli picked up the bag that contained the food for the trip: they'd just be staying for breakfast the next day, so it wasn't too heavy. Halldora picked up her own duffel bag and shrugged the sleeping bags on her other shoulder.

"Why do I have to carry Mathias' stuff?" Erikur grumbled.

The Finn met her companion's eyes, "He came with you?"

"No, I just know he's forgotten something."

_Well_, Tuuli thought, _that was oddly sweet of her._

"And because he left it at my house and I don't want his junk cluttering things."

_Never mind…_

They tossed everything into the respective tents, and Halldora set to work.

"Erikur, clear a space for a fire."

"What are you going to do?"

She gave him an incredulous – well, Tuuli assumed it was incredulous – look. "I'm going to go ask a fairy if there's any danger nearby."

"Of course you are."

Berwald came back with one arm filled with sticks and the other bigger branches, perfect for a good fire.

He and Tuuli built the fire, since Halldora was still talking to fairies and Erikur was grumbling about… well, everything.

It really was a nice time.

* * *

><p>But not for Mathias.<p>

He was still stumbling around on the trail, as he had completely lost track of time and didn't question the possibility that he was going the wrong way. Granted, he wasn't really, but it taking a while.

…well, at least it wasn't dark yet.

* * *

><p>Berwald had, somewhere in his mind, made the decision to teach Erikur how to make a snare.<p>

Really, they didn't try to figure out _why_ he had made that decision. Erikur had mentioned it once when they were watching some survival show and Berwald had just decided that that was something he could do while camping.

"Come 'n." he said to the lazing Icelander.

He gave him an accidentally intimidating look, which got the point across nicely, even if it wasn't intentional.

They walked over to some trees that would be easy to work with, and the Swede set to work trying to teach.

A few minutes later, they each had a snare set up.

Halldora, who had previously been reading a book by the fire, walked over.

"Erikur, are you trying to catch a bear?"

The red-faced Icelandic man stuttered, "Sh-shut up… Maybe I am!"

Tuuli walked over and messed with the rope, "It's not bad, even if it would never catch something edible. Just make sure Hanatamago doesn't get caught in Berwald's."

"Ya did… didn't do _too_ bad…" agreed the Swede.

He tried to wave them off, but his voice was still high with embarrassment, "I'm going to make something to eat…"

Tuuli noticed this, "Umm, I've got it!"

"Seriously, my food isn't _that_ bad!"

The rest of the day was quite peaceful. Halldora and Berwald played cards for a while – Erikur still doesn't know who won – and Tuuli played with Hanatamago.

"Hallie, where's Mathias?" Tuuli asked.

"I really don't know. Or care, actually." She added the last part with some hesitation, as noted by the other countries.

The other two shrugged it off as well. Mathias would be fine. The nights at that time of year were a reasonable length, and he'd survived in the woods before. Even that assumes that he'd left in the first place. He could easily have forgotten.

So they each retired one by one, not overly worried but resolved to go and look for him if need be.

* * *

><p>Erikur couldn't sleep.<p>

Berwald was snoring lightly, and he just stared at the top of the tent and tried to block out the whispering from the next tent, which was slowly dying like the fire outside.

Then he heard it.

A sharp yelp came from outside, along with the shaking of tree branches.

It made him jump and freeze, eyes wide. Berwald hadn't responded, which made him think it might have been his imagination. Hanatamago, who had nipped at their heels all weekend, would have responded as well.

And then came a low moaning, with the rustling of leaves.

_It's just one of Halldora's trolls, or some other creature… Yeah, I mean, she attracts that sort of thing all the time!_

After it said something (?) that sounded a bit like "Hallie", he resolved that that must've been it.

A little bit later, he was proved wrong.

"Come on guys, seriously! A little help!"

Well, at least they found Mathias.

"I can't believe your snare actually did something." Halldora remarked, looking up.

"He caught a b'r." Berwald nodded.

Mathias looked at him, red-faced from the blood rushing to his head. "Shut up, Waldo."

Erikur and Tuuli looked at each other before bursting out laughing. Even Halldora had a light smile, and they were pretty sure the expression on Berwald's face was that of sadistic amusement.

"You could at least cut me down first."

So, Berwald pulled out a camping knife and cut the rope.

"Oof!"

Halldora patted him on the head, "Come on."

"Don't you guys have anything to eat?"

Tuuli tossed him a bag of marshmallows, and he grinned and shook his head slightly.

"Sorry I'm late!"

We won't go into the next day, when Halldora convinced Mathias to go with her and her brother so he wouldn't get lost on the way home.

The catch? He had to carry her.


	19. Dingbat

**Prompt: Dingbat**

**Pairings: DenNor**

**Genderbent: Norway**

**Summary: They both have their stupid moments, sometimes.**

**A/N: I may have to go on an unofficial hiatus for exams/holidays, so I can't guarantee an update for the next 3-4 weeks.**

**Oh Halldora, so tsundere… Anyway, yay for revisiting cliché fluff! I'm not exactly happy with the way this turned out. Better than some, worse than others, you know? I think I went a little overboard on Norway's character.**

* * *

><p>As little sense it made for someone like Mathias to even end up injured on such an assignment, Halldora was worried. Much more worried than she would ever admit.<p>

In fact, she was so worried it was the first time she would ever even admit to _herself_ that she was concerned.

Tensions between he and Sweden had calmed considerably, a lull in the arguments that kept him ranting for hours. She spent her days watching him and caring for her little brother.

Really, it was like caring for both of them.

He had simply gone to a different part of, well, her country, but was passing close to the Swede's home. It would worry any partner, any friend, especially any lover.

Especially, _especially_ someone like Halldora.

It had been two weeks. Two whole weeks, and no contact at all! Nothing, absolutely nothing, had happened in those two weeks.

She was pacing by that time, going about the grounds. Often, she insisted, she had the excuse of taking Erikur to the kitchen for sweets and to play with some of the servant's children, or simply check in on things when Mathias was away. The Norwegian even read old books walking around!

Then, when she was hanging around the stables, she heard the news, muttered in Danish by a stable boy.

"Ja, I heard there were bandits. Not many; thank the gods."

"But a bunch was hurt. I never heard how badly."

"How long have they been gone? Two weeks?"

"Ja. They'll be back soon."

She couldn't find out more from anyone. It was always the same story or no story at all. No one seemed to be able to tell exactly what had happened and that just made her worry more. He was almost definitely hurt!

And then, one night, he had simply walked into the room she had shared with her brother.

She was seated on her bed, having just tucked in Erikur and was brushing her hair back from where it was pinned up.

The Dane's eyes softened at the boy curled up on the bed, and then he saw hers.

She could only see the blood on his sleeve.

"Hey, Hallie! I was trying for 'romantic and cool' here!" he yelped as she rushed up and, instead of the passionate embrace he had expected, tore back part of his sleeve and bracer.

"You're hurt."

He pushed her back a bit, "It's just a scratch, relax. I tripped when I was getting off my horse…"

She just stopped. The idea that it was such a minimal injury hadn't occurred to her...

She looked away, "Oh…" Her face was red and hot from embarrassment.

Mathias perked up and he grinned, "You were worried, weren't you? Aww, you do care!"

"Shut…" her voice cracked, "…up."

He was a bit startled when he realized tears were rolling down her red cheeks. He smiled knowingly, "Hey, I'm back in one piece." And then she was in his arms. She never seemed to sob, even when they were much younger. Sometimes he was only sure she was upset because she let him hold her like that, one arm around her shoulder and the other around her hips.

"You're a bastard."

He smirked, "And why is that?"

She stuttered, "I… My bed isn't as comfortable."

"Of course not, Hallie. I'm not in it!"

She also would admit to missing him, but the lack of a punch was enough to convince the Dane.

So they savored the moment, and went back to his room.


	20. Another Note

Wow I hate posting this sort of thing as an entire chapter.

Hey guys. I just wanted to say that this is now officially on hiatus until further notice.

I haven't lost interest per say, but I used this story to make sure I kept writing something on a schedule. It has served its purpose for now, and I have several other stories that require my attention.

I'm sorry to anyone who was really hoping for a new chapter soon. I don't like just leaving something, but it has to happen to a story like this at some point.

I will update again, and this won't be marked as complete. As I come up with ideas, I'll stockpile them and maybe post occasionally.

If anyone has any prompt ideas or requests, I'll write it for you; angst, humor, anything that fits with what the summary says, really.

Thank you so much being patient!

-Birdie


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